Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Bits o' Legionnaire Business Re: Legion Worlds Six - updated 20 Oct 20

The Spear of Artemis - Amynta of Nostos ii, incredible strength, speed, invulnerability, space flight, carries magical weapons
Karate Kid ? Mithindrivithis Ngandraffa of Lythyl, strength, reflexes, mimetic motor learning giving incredible combat skills


The Spear of Artemis and Karate Kid sparred.

Usually the Spear of Artemis would win a moderately higher percentage of these bouts. Despite her elfin opponent's incredible skills the Amazon's strength, speed and durability were simply far in excess so overpowered the Lythylian - not that that stopped her trying again and again.

The rules were simple - they had one minute to get their opponent to either remain face down on the mat for two seconds or acquiesce and if neither had then the AI would tell them who had struck the most blows, meaning they had won. Today though Karate Kid had won 14 of the last 15 matches. The one she had lost had been thrown because she had hoped it might give her friend a little bit of confidence. Eventually though the elfin martial artist called for their training to stop and asked her Amazon friend what was distracting her.

"You are right Mithindrivithis. I am sorry that today has not been as exciting as usual. My mind is... it wanders and there are flashes of... there is still a feeling of loss, and of darkness within me. Whatever that monster on Talok did to us it is still there inside me and I still feel it like some sort of a mental tumour. It is ...most unpleasant."

Karate Kid bowed her head in acknowledgement. "I have heard others say similar," She said quietly "...and that there is aid available. Dr Falkner and her team are very thorough, or so others say. Amynta, if they can help you get past this it will be of benefit to us all. I am worried about you my friend."

The Spear of Artemis raised her face to the ceiling high above and sighed before rubbing at the tears that swelled in her eyes. When spoke, her voice sounded surprisingly brittle.

"Mithindrivithis... you are a kind friend, perhaps more so than I deserve, though at this moment I think what would be best perhaps would be if I returned home to Nostos ii for a day or two. The priestesses will know how to help me. I am feeling very out of sorts." there was genuine doubt and concern in the Amazons voice, something her diminutive colleague had never heard before.

"Of course, Amynta, though please allow me to join you though as I too feel as if I need to mourn for a loss I cannot fully explain..."

Sun Boy sat in a corner booth of a dingy basement bar in Moscopolis and drank scotch whiskey.

None of that Synth-whiskey rubbish, no thank you! As far as Dirk was concerned that was reserved for tourists, Khunds and poor people.

Currently Dirk Morgna was making his way through a genuine glass bottle of proper, home grown Terran whiskey with that distinctive roughness that scratched and warmed his throat in equal measure as it went down. It wasn't his usual drink of choice but somehow it felt like the right thing. He had been left alone by the locals; it wasn't the sort of establishment where people would interact too much with strangers.

When the man sat next to him Dirk turned and started to ask him to leave. A smile from under the strangers' hood stopped him.

"Gim! Brother am I glad to see you!" The drunk Legionnaire hugged his former colleague tightly.

Gim Allon could smell the alcohol coming through Dirk's pores... this was obviously a serious bender!

Sun Boy had left Home Base a few hours after being dropped off from the service at Shanghalla. That had been 18 hours ago. He had said that he had some personal business to attend to. Dirk had subsequently turned off the active status of his flight ring and Gim knew that the chances were things weren't going to be pretty. Gim had slowly been getting more and more worried about his friend. The former Legionnaire had sorted some things out with the Academy students, caught up on 6 hours sleep and then checked Dirk's status again - worryingly, it was still offline. For all his flippant facade Gim knew that Dirk cared deeply for his teammates and had always held a bit of a crush for Kara - actually, Gim knew that most of the male Legionnaires had, certainly he admitted to himself that he had definitely been attracted to the legendary Super Girl back in the day. The former Legionnaire spoke to his Durlan wife about his concerns and she told him that in her eyes Gim wasn't much of a friend if he was sat at home complaining about it, he needed to go check on Dirk to make sure he was okay.


"Want a drinking buddy? I could certainly do with one right now. Actually, more than one.... It's been a bloody awful couple of days."

"Hmmm... yeah, and then some." Dirk turned away from Gim and threw the whiskey in front of him down his throat. "Still, while there's whiskey and places like this we'll get through it." Dirk didn't face Gim as he spoke.

Gim motioned the bar-bot to bring over a bottle of whiskey and a glass for himself. He knew Dirk well enough to know it would take some time before he would open up. Some time and a lot of alcohol. Gim threw three shots one after the other and visibly shuddered, this wasn't the sort of sophisticated drink he'd usually chose. Dirk snorted a laugh.

"Want 'nother?" Dirk's hand trembled as he poured them both another drink though he didn't spill a drop. Gim admitted to himself that he was impressed.

"Sure. Thanks bud. Yera says 'hi' by the way."

"You got a pass from that tricky wife o' yours to come play with me? Wow! I must be in a bad place..." Dirk had tried to sound as if he were joking but Gim thought he sounded bitter.

"She's... we were both worried about you Dirk, you know that don't you?"

"That's kind." Dirk said with very little conviction and both men were silent for several long seconds.

"I'm gonna say it then we don't have to mention it again but I hope you aren't blaming yourself for that kid's death. Jorn knew what he'd signed up for and he was..."

"Fuckin' shut up!" Dirk snapped, before taking a breath through clenched teeth and adding much more softly, "I thought you said you were here to drink... So, drink already will ya?"

Gim poured them both another shot and stared at the far side of the bar while he twirled the small glass between a thumb and index finger. They remained silent for another minute, which Gim thought felt like ten.

"Brainy's left. Gone back to Colu or so I heard." Dirk remained silent as he stared at the glass in front of him after Gim said this. The silence between them dragged.

"Listen Dirk, c'mon, you know how much hassle it was to find you here? At least try to join in the conversation. You've been one of my closest friends since I was 17. I can't stand to see you like this." Again, there was a long silence. This time Gim Allon decided to let it sit between them until Dirk said something.

"You were always a lot kinder than me Gim. I only joined the team to wind up my father and hook up with pretty girls." Once more, there was a silence for several long minutes before Dirk continued, "Y'know, one thing that always kinda bugged me... and yeah before you say it, I've a one-track mind, but, I always thought Nura and me would've got it on but it never happened... did you and her ever...?"

Gim laughed before he replied. Typical Dirk manoeuvre to get the subject onto his bedroom conquests rather than speak about what was really on him mind.

"Nah, I was too obsessed with Salu back in the day." Gim smiled as he replied, remembering his teenage mooning over their teammate, "Though I did have a fling with Lu... all three of her actually."

"You dawg Allon!" Sun Boy turned to his friend, his face suddenly animated, "I can't believe you never told me 'bout that."

"Hey, it was a long time ago, right after we joined the team. It wasn't like how you imagine..." Gim blushed, "I reckon she was just looking for some affection but me being a horny teenager... I cringe to think about it now. Only happened a few times. Thankfully there were never any hard feelings afterwards but we both kinda knew it was never going to lead anywhere serious, we both wanted totally different things y'know? Then Salu joined and I was head over heels for her..."

There was a silence again before Dirk spoke.

"I slept with Salu once. Kind of. She was really angry and I wasn't in the mood to get beaten up so we didn't get very far... ended up just talking about how unfair it all is. Not what you'd imagine either, eh?"

They both began to laugh as they started to reminisce, telling the outrageous personal stories that they had rarely shared as well as breaking confidences they had kept over the years. It all ended thirty minutes later after Gim sharing a particularly embarrassing story that he'd witnessed from the Monitor Board regarding Element Lad interrupting and definitely misreading the signs between Garth and Imra in a shower. They were laughing so hard that it made Dirk start to throw up.

Dirk had tears rolling down his face from laughing so hard as he put his hand up to his mouth. Unfortunately, he wasn't quick enough to stop the vomit as it shot out in streams from between his fingers.

"BUCKET!" Gim yelled to the bar-bot which set both men off again.

The bar-bot materialised with two buckets and a cleaning droid. After they had cleaned up the mess Dirk had created, Gim went up to the bar to settle the bill. Dirk laid back onto a couch. He groaned and wiped the sick from his face with his fingers and then held his hands out to shake the mess off. Gim came back over from the bar with a damp cloth and several large tissues. He took the outstretched hands and wiped them clean before following the mischievous impulse to throw the cloth onto Dirk's face. Dirk didn't move for several seconds before sitting bolt upright and snatching the cloth from his face.

"You were always a jerk Allon, always!" Even as he said this Dirk started to laugh again. Gim was already laughing and held his hand out as an offer to pull his drunken friend up from the couch.

"Time to go back now, eh?" Gim said.

"Yeah, guess so." Sun Boy got up from the couch and stretched. "Y'know I always thought self-pity was such an unattractive emotion so if you don't tell anyone about this, I'll keep quiet about you being unable to satisfy Triplicate girl... something Chuck managed for years."

Gim shook his head and smiled as he replied dryly, "Yeah, I'd never thought of it like that... thanks." They both laughed again as they strolled out of the dingy bar.

"I've missed you Mr Morgna."

"Yup, so you should Mr Allon, so you should. Let's go home."

Beautiful, Harbi. Beautiful, simply beautiful.

Mourning scenes are hard to write, but you pulled them off wonderfully. Brainy resigning via hologram, Tinya mixing grief with the blossoming of love, Dawny and Thunder and Mon quietly grieving...

Your Dirk/Gim scene was my favorite. It was so real, I can just imagine them doing that, and I can just imagine real buddies doing that. Every bit, from the mixture of grief to the silly jokes to the talking / not talking about it. Gim and Lu, hah! I laughed at that, and Dirk's mix of being impressed and being a little bit envious (because come on, he so was, Gim and 3 Lus...!)

And Dirk never getting it on with Nura, spot on too

Beautiful. Again, simply beautiful.

You're very kind IB, thank you.

I've about half a dozen more posts that will show how the various members of the team are coping. After that a couple of mini-adventures are planned.

Thanks again,

C

Phantom Girl - Team leader, Tinya Wazzo of Bgtzl Dimension, intangibility
Timber Wolf - Brin Londo of Zuun, enhanced strength, speed, agility, reflexes and senses
Shield - Laurel Kent of Earth, physical invulnerability, tactile psychometry
Kid Quantum - Jazmin Cullen of Xanthu, creation of temporal quantum bubbles, flight
Element Lad - Jan Arrah of Trom, elemental transmutation

Thunder - Deputy leader, Cecelia Becks of 21st Century Earth, immense strength, speed, indestructibility, space flight, wisdom
Kinetix - Zoe Saugin of Aleph, telekinetic animation
M?Windaji - Gahaji of Kiringyaga, super tracker, carries the Ruby of Life allowing tactile transformative magic
Ultra Girl - Li-Fahn Qiong of Xanthu - incredible strength, speed, indestructibility, spaceflight, and projection of force blasts, effectively limited to one at a time

Lightning Lass - Senior Team member, Ayla Ranzz of Winath, electrical generation and manipulation
Backlash - Mrruaw M?Nau of Simballi, enhanced strength, speed, senses, absorbs kinetic energy to boost own size and mass
XS - Jenni Ognats of an alternate dimension Aarok, phenomenal speed
Polar Girl - Mel Lassar of Tharr - cryokinesis
Cosmic Kid - Po Miman, Justice Legionnaire of alternate dimension Mars, energy manipulation and flight


It was not a good day to be a criminal within the United Planets.

As various news outlets had reported that the vast majority of the Legionnaires were temporarily out of action after the recent troubles on Talok viii many criminally minded entrepreneurs decided today would be the day they could execute whatever nefarious plan they had held.

Tinya had been watching the news feeds and decided enough was enough. She needed to see if Jan was okay on missions and also wanted to check that Brin and the group that had returned with him were up to scratch so she decided to take action. Phantom Girl called together all the Legionnaires currently available and after splitting them into groups she issued a challenge - whichever team made the most arrests in the next 10 hours would win a night out on her while the other teams pulled an extra shift.

After that she contacted Media Star Corporation and asked if they wanted to send through three reporters to follow the teams into action.

Henry was back on line and eager to helps so each team scanned the news streams before calling up warps.

Tinya led her team to Mardru, a small planet that usually specialised in agricultural exports to the rest of the galaxy. Currently, an eco-terrorist had claimed they would poison the main aquifer for the major continent which contained 95% of the arable land unless they received an immense sum of credits. It took the team forty minutes to track the terrorist down and stop their blackmail scheme. Tinya made sure that their victory was broadcast far and wide. As far as she could see they were the first team to have a broadcast. That bode well, she proudly told her team as she led them through another warp.

The team then went to Lunar London where a spate of muggings had been going on. It was a small-fry case really but it looked good to the media and every arrest counted! Their reporter loved it and asked for more 'down-to-earth' stories. Tinya said she couldn't promise but they'd see what the news feeds were showing. As soon as the SP took the gang of juvey perps away Tinya took her team to the major station circling Alpha Centauri Prime as there were reports of meta crime happening.

Timber wolf and Shield proved to be an effective fighting unit against the half dozen metas they encountered. The criminals had all undergone the same gene-mod giving them massively mutated torso's and arms that signalled they would have immense strength. After leaping into the centre of the group Brin took Laurel's hands in his and swung her around at great speed cracking each of them on the head with her invulnerable body. They all fell down and were quickly cuffed and arrested. Jan admitted quietly to Tinya that it may not have been the classiest take-down he had ever witnessed but it was certainly effective and, he was even a little bit impressed! Tinya laughed as she agreed. It seemed to her that perhaps Element Lad really was his old self again if he was back to making sideways underhand compliments like that. Tinya had really missed Jan's understated sense of humour.

Tinya checked the SP feeds and called up the next warp to the asteroid fields of the K'natoth B'sarinadri Oohji Sphere where reports said there was trouble happening at a bank. They quickly located the source of the reported trouble - a rogue Braalian. She lasted all of two seconds until Kid Quantum froze her in place. The reporter asked if they could make it a bit more exciting next time as a quick and easy victory like that wouldn't get much attention in the competitive media feeds. Jazmin swore at him convincingly before asking if footage of that would get the ratings. Tinya warned the Xanthuan along their shared telepathic grid that this was an exercise in being media friendly so Jazmin should act nicer and definitely apologise and make it up to the reporter... the tone of the message made it obvious that the team leader was not impressed. Jazmin apologised profusely to the reporter and agreed to give an interview after the team's shift was over as an exclusive for their vaults as way of reparations.

While Kid Quantum was apologising to the reporter Element Lad, Timber Wolf and Shield tracked down the thieves that had been working with the Braalian - she had been the distraction from the thief's real objective, to get a lot of money from out of the bank vault. Tinya made a point of congratulating Jan, Brin and Laurel heartily for the cameras. Jazmin stuck her tongue out at her friends as the cameras pointed their way. The replied by smiling even wider.

The next warp opened...

Comet Queen - Grava of Extal colony, spaceflight, comet gas extrusion
Comet King - Drinchnar Lamment of Extal colony, spaceflight, comet gas extrusion
Atom Girl - Sylva Nrilsan of Imsk, can shrink herself to microscopic size


First Base

Atom Girl felt confused.

As she strolled the corridors of Home Base she was conflicted: on one hand she was grateful for the solitude as she ruminated over Kara's loss and the anger that she felt buzzing inside her that she had been unable to do more to help the Kryptonian, and on the other she really wanted to see Prince Alfon Gundrix Maunheesta, the former student that had become her lover before leaving with a group of his fellow students to seek out their own adventures after failing to gain membership at the last try-out. She really wanted to curl up in his arms under a duvet and listen as their breath fell into synch...

Instead she bumped into Comet Queen.

Grava was stood in the corridor; her back was to Sylva as she turned the long corner. For the briefest of moments, Sylva considered turning around and walking away quietly. Grava's shoulders shook and her hands were help up to her face, she was obviously weeping.

"Grava, hey! How are you there?" As Comet Queen had a reputation of being pathologically positive Atom Girl was unsure what to do but knew that she had to help her colleague. Grava continued to weep into her hands.

Sylva cautiously approached her fellow Legionnaire and once she was standing in front of her reached out and placed a hand on Grava's shoulder.

"Please... make it stop, like it's an event horizon plunge in the void!" Grava spoke quietly as she continued to keep her hands over her face.

"Hey... I'm here for you. We'll get through this together, I promise." Sylva reached out to move Grava's hands away from her face. She didn't resist though remained with her face pointed at the floor, tears streaming from her eyes. Without thinking Sylva hugged Grava. They stood like that for several seconds before a voice interrupted them.

"Grava-licious! What's goin' on my li'l star beam?" Drinchnar Lamment said. He had flown down the corridor behind Sylva.

Comet Queen didn't say anything as Atom Girl stepped away from her.

"Sylva? Wha's goin' on?" The former soldier asked gruffly, staring at Atom Girl.

Before Atom Girl replied Grave spoke up. Grava looked up into the broad face of her lover and gave a weak smile.

"Like, I was goin' to the rec when... like, it all... like, went blackout grim. My..." She started to cry again and splutter words incoherently.

"Okay, it's okay." Sylva said. She went to give Grava a hug but Drinshnar stepped in before her and pout an arm across the crying girl's shoulders.

"We're gonna see that Jovian brainshrinker Dr Faulkner darlin', she's like a stellar level clever brainyologist and will get us right as space-rain in a nano. I promise you." Drinchnar guided Grava along the corridor. He looked over his shoulder at Sylva and mouthed his thanks to her.

After they left Sylva considered what she had just seen. She had heard from other Legionnaires that quite a few were suffering with these sorts of feelings since returning from Talok viii. Several had said they were overcome by a sudden deep feeling of sadness and depression, while others said they had strange bouts of anger and anxiety. The most commonly speculated answer to why this was happening amongst those Sylva had spoken to was that whatever had possessed them all had affected the actual chemistry in the brains somehow. It seemed every Legionnaire that had been Blight infected was suffering with this psychic darkness to some degree. Dr Faulkner had supposedly asked for help from the Medi-paths on Naltor as her case load had erupted in the last few days.

Sylva wondered how long these bouts of darkness would last. The Imskian knew that if they weren't able to get some permanent control over them then the Legion would be seriously compromised.

Chemical Kid - Hadru Jamik of Phlon, catalyses chemical reactions

Afterwards Hadru regretted going there that night.

The club was known for both its discretion and its expansive range of strong drinks. It was poorly lit with a wide selection of booths and habitat pods for its clientele. Hadru had sat alone for most of the evening. He wished Marya could have been there as his fire breathing friend had a mischievous sense of humour that would have helped kill the monotony and perhaps help him forget what he had done under the influence of the Blight. Help him forget how much he enjoyed it. Even Brek telling the same old stories and getting him to alchemise the alcohol so they could drink more would have helped. But, sat by himself surrounded by the dozens of fellow patrons, there was no-one to help block out the Blight-made angry and destructive urges that flashed through his system almost as regularly as his heart beat.

D r Falkner had spent time with him earlier that day before they had attended the service and she suggested he try to give a name to his feelings. Acknowledgement is a power, she said, as it allows you to know what you are fighting with. The medi-path counselor had been so kind as she spoke and he had resisted the need to cry for several minutes as she did. Once the tears had started though there was little he could do to stop them streaming down his cheeks and Dr Falkner had given him a sad smile as she spoke.

"You must allow them to come out Hadru, it's only your body's way of getting rid of all the hurt. Don't stop, let them fall...."

He had stayed in her office for nearly an hour, way over his allotted thirty-minute psyche evaluation time and was certain that someone would have noticed and was probably now taking pleasure in talking about it. He could imagine the whispers going around Shakes.

Anyway... as he was off the active mission rota for 24 hours, he came here to give himself some space.

He danced by himself in a corner of one of the upper floors, lit by holo-dancers that mirrored his moves.

He drank alcohol and stims and resisted, mostly, the urge to neutralize their effects on his system.

Two rather attractive ladies tried to muscle in on his booth but he quickly sent them away, that wasn't the sort of company he felt he needed this evening.

It was almost three hours later that he left and while on the ramp to the shuttle bay he finally got the relief he had needed...

Two young men, one much taller than Hadru who walked with a long ornate cane while the other was shorter and heavily muscled, called out to him. They both sounded drunk and so the Legionnaire ignored them. They started shouting abuse at him for walking away and predictably when that didn't elicit the response they wanted from him they came towards him.

The tall one strode in front of Hadru and held out his cane - the point fizzled with electricity. Hadru smiled and looked over the top of his eye-screens. The pizo-electric battery was simple to neutralize and as he thought that the cane spluttered sparks and died. The shorter and more muscular of the two stepped up and pushed the Legionnaire onto the ground.

"We wis talkin' ti ya boy." his guttural accent didn't hide his drunken aggression.

"That may have been an error on your part." Hadru replied quietly as he got to his feet. He could easily stop the pair of them with little more than a glance but instead decided that they needed to learn a proper lesson.

Without a word Hadru kicked out, his heel cracking painfully against his opponents' kneecap before scraping it down the shin and stamped on the top of his opponents' foot with a bone crushing thud. As the heavyset young man started to recoil Hadru stepped forward and rabbit punched him in the throat followed quickly by another punch onto the bridge of his nose. As the muscular man fell back in pain his tall friend stepped forward and whacked his cane off Hadru's shoulder. Taking a step back away from the swinging cane the Legionnaire remembered something said in the training that Science Police Officer Tarev Jusool of Talok viii had given him about fighting opponents with weapons - either get out of range and run or get in close and fight dirty.

Hadru smiled viciously.

As expected, the tall man with the cane saw Hadru stepping back as an opportunity to take advantage and so lunged forward, holding his cane like a rapier. Hadru easily sidestepped it and jumped at the man, curling his body to slam into his opponent at an angle so throwing him off his feet. They crashed to the ferro-concrete floor and before his opponent could move Hadru punched him as hard as he could in the face three times knocking him unconscious. His knuckles were covered in blood, both that of the tall man who had attacked him and his own. The sudden sharp pain felt almost good!

"If ya's 'urt Boabb then ya's gonna rigret et..." the low growling voice of the muscular man that Hadru had hit first wasn't enough of a warning as a blow smashed into the young Phlonite's back sending him sprawling.

Hadru scrambled to his feet, his head reeling, and jumped to the side thereby avoiding his opponent as he barreled towards the Legionnaire. A muscular arm caught Hadru in the gut and they both went down. The two rolled on the ground, the strong man with his arms around Hadru trying to squeeze the breath out of him. Hadru had one arm free and he used that to press into his opponents' throat, still sore from the earlier punch, to push him away. As the stars seemed to swirl on the edge of his vision the powerfully built man eased his grip and Hadru moved his other hand up. He pushed both thumbs into the corners of his opponents' mouth and pulled at the cheeks, ripping the edges brutally. The pain as the blood started gushing down his face was enough to force the attacker off Hadru and gave them room to stand apart. They stood three feet apart from each other, breathing heavily and sizing their opponents up.

"Ya's gonna git hurt now fir that boy.."

Even as the muscular man spoke Hadru kicked out. The sole of his boot crunched into the broad man's solar plexus and he scrunched over with a gasp. Hadru leapt up and slammed his fist as hard as he could into the back of his muscular attackers' neck as he came down smashing him face first into the floor and bloody unconsciousness. Hadru rolled the broad man over with a kick of his boot and, just to be certain, punched him again on the face several more times.

For several seconds the Legionnaire bent over with his hands on his knees anad took several deep breaths. A quick scan with his flight ring showed that neither opponent had any life-threatening injuries in need of urgent assistance. Hadru made a call through his flight ring to alert the local emergency medi-services of his opponents needs before summoning a warp from Henry and returning to his quarters.

Thunder - Deputy leader, Cecelia Becks of 21st Century Earth, immense strength, speed, indestructibility, space flight, wisdom
Kinetix - Zoe Saugin of Aleph, telekinetic animation
M?Windaji - Gahaji of Kiringyaga, super tracker, carries the Ruby of Life allowing tactile transformative magic
Ultra Girl - Li-Fahn Qiong of Xanthu - incredible strength, speed, indestructibility, spaceflight, and projection of force blasts, effectively limited to one at a time


Cece's team went after a rogue ship that had launched an unexpected attack on the satellite headquarters of a major corporation. While Ultra Girl followed the deputy leader into attacking the heavily armoured craft head on M'Windaji and Kinetix snuck aboard and arrested the three-man crew. The attackers admitted to launching the missiles at the corporation's base after losing their jobs several months before - they had chosen this day to attack as they knew the place would not be heavily manned so they hoped there would be minimal injury or loss of life. They were not happy that the media had recorded their confessions but were led away without any real problems.

The team then warped to Ventura as a turf war that had been simmering for quite a while finally erupted between rival gangs. Gahaji quickly found the ring leaders while the rest of the team stopped their thugs from inflicting any more damage. In total they made 26 arrests within a rather frantic hour. The Science Police officer on the scene said into the reporter's camera that without the Legion helping out that day they would have expected a massive loss of innocent life and damage to the local infrastructure. Cece congratulated the team before leading through the warp to their next case..

M'Windaji again proved himself when a cat burglar on Nejakur proved no match for his skills at finding both the thief and their hidden stash of loot from previous robberies. The reporter told the young man from Kiringyaga that he was currently trending as one of the most popular Legionnaires in the Media Star daily polls. Kinetix blew a raspberry and pretended to huff until Gahaji put an arm around her and promised next time she could do the hard work instead... Thunder smiled at her red-haired colleague's obvious manipulation and examined the news feed to find their next job.

Next the team warped to Mars to save a small township on the southern slops of Mons Olympos from a savage dust storm after their central city-shield had reported a major malfunction. Kinetix got her opportunity to prove her worth as she mended the shield telekinetically while the rest of the team checked that the population were okay. There were no arrests but it was a very media friendly story that got a lot of traction when it aired later that day. Kinetix really wanted to ask the reporter if her ratings had gone up as well but bit her tongue and smiled for the camera instead.

The report of an attack on the Mountain People of Garathratharassalan gave the squad their next mission as they warped into a pirate raid on the ancient temples of these spiritual people. Thunder and Ultra Girl quickly disabled the three small attacking crafts while Kinetix and M'wandaji kept the population safe. They had one hour left and Thunder asked Ultra Girl to pick their next mission.

The new Legionnaire examined the news feeds and their next warp was summoned...

Home Base, Sol System

Cosmic Boy - Rokk Krinn of Braal, manipulation of magnetic fields
Shadow Lass - Tasmia Mallor of Talok viii, summons and manipulates the Darkfield, access to ancestral knowledge


Rokk Krinn and Tasmia Mallor were sat in a small side room on Home Base.

Lydda had left them moments before to organise a training session for a group of students that appeared to be getting quite rowdy in the communal refectory on level 18. Lydda had muttered darkly to herself as she left... If they wanted some way to burn off their energy, she was sure she could find something appropriate for their needs like a trip to the plague slums of Istruaprosha Sigma to work with the Neo-Heresy Lepers during the current monsoon season.

Both Tasmia and Rokk smiled with understanding. Lydda Jath was one of the most big-hearted people either of them knew, she was also someone with the determination and forthrightness of a Kalponean Hog Elephant who didn't appreciate her time being wasted...

Cosmic Boy knew Shadow Lass enough to see there was something she desperately needed to say. Lydda had obviously seen it a light year off as well though she had made her excuses to go sort out the students with a minimum of fuss so Rokk imagined she had probably tried to speak to Tasmia but had got nowhere. Actually, Rokk couldn't imagine Lydda not speaking to Tasmia about whatever it was that bothered her this much. They had been friends for many years and had built up a strong working relationship. Still, they both understood that Tasmia could be guarded... shut down, even, if she was not 100% certain within herself.

In light of the disaster that had happened on Talok viii Rokk could not imagine anyone feeling certain of very much right now, while the horror was still fresh and the even the death toll was uncertain. And as Tasmia Mallor was one the Planetary Champions she must be feeling something way beyond what he could understand. For a second, he wondered if he should call the team's counsellor, though knew as soon as that thought hit his conscious mind that Tasmia would never open up to a stranger, at least not in any way that would be meaningful or helpful to either. He also knew that any small chit chat to break the ice wouldn't work. He needed to give Tasmia the space she needed to find the words.

There hung between them a pregnant silence, heavy with the words that were urgently pushing to get out.

"Rokk, I need to return to the team, but after what happened... will they accept me?"

"What? Of course! They would be grateful. You have friends there and all your expertise and talent would be greatly appreciated. You know that Tas."

"I... miss my friends and feel that the Galaxy needs to see that the Talokeans are not defeated, but I worry... my heart is full of so much hurt right now." Tasmia Mallor stopped and took two breaths before she continued, "Would it be safe?"

"The Legion is never safe, we've both lost friends there. But you know that..."

"No, I know that risks of a Legionnaire's life. What I wonder is if it would be safe for others to be around me?

"Ah. Yes... that is something that only you can answer Tasmia. Do you think you should come to the Academy first? For a couple of months maybe?"

"Certainly not! I am the Shadow Champion of my people Rokk, I do not need training in using my powers." She started to stand up as if to leave.

"No, Tasmia I'm sorry if I wasn't clear, really, I am sorry. What I meant was to come to the Academy as a tutor. Your skills should be shared... that would be a tremendous gift to the metas of the galaxy right now. Lydda and I would love it if you could join us and I'm sure the rest of the team would as well." Rokk smiled, "And there's no feeling like watching the next generation of hero's come to realise just how magnificent they really are. That will inspire you, I guarantee it, I know it does it for me, every day.""

"That is... that's something I had not considered. It sounds interesting." Tasmia Mallor shared a rare smile.

Tellus - Ganglios of Hykraius, telepathy and telekinesis
Starkling - telepathic swarm-being composed of indestructible ball bearing sized components

Mordecai - golem with immense strength and durability


Tellus swam.

The bulky Hykraian looked cumbersome when out of his natural element but here is the methane sea that had been captured in his vaulted hall-like room the psychic legionnaire could show his deft agility and prowess as he swam. He had suffered under the influence of the blight infestation, not only be it twisting his own perception so that the dark acts it had him do seemed pleasant but also as he could sense the minds of his colleagues around him at the same time. Here in his own rather cavernous quarters the only thoughts that intruded on his were the quite purring of the Mordecai as it stood unmoving at the centre of room.

Tellus had grown very fond of the silent golem. It had changed so much from the dangerous angry being the team had met over a year ago. Once it had been released from the Emerald Empress and her nasty crew it had almost immediately settled down and made it clear that it felt at home with Tellus, the Legionnaire that had freed it from its cruel existence. It was the perfect company for Tellus as he swam. It had an innocence and happiness inherent within its nature that having it here was almost like a mental balm to the Hykraian's woes. The Mordecai had no mental barriers as such so it unknowingly broadcast its feelings into the psychic aether. Currently, as it appeared to live perpetually in the moment, there was a feeling of contentment and peace emanating from the golem that Tellus really appreciated.

The light beside the entrance flickered, indicating that someone had activated the air-lock into this methane filled environment. Tellus almost sighed as he swam to the entrance pod. As Tellus approached the door irised open and Starkling flew through, the composite being's small marble sized pieces forming an eel-like form.

<Starkling? How can I help you?> Tellus asked courteously.

<We are in need of... we do not understand what transgressed on Talok viii and need solace as we now exist with an unknown turmoil>

Tellus sent a wave of understanding and compassion out towards the new Legionnaire and asked it to join him as he enjoyed the tranquillity within his home.

He was aware that students had found the individual pieces of Starkling on Talok viii. The Blight had negated the telepathic field that permeated the component parts of the strange Legionnaire rendering it useless in the battle for that world. Tellus was unsure if the students had managed to retrieve all of the parts that made it up in their frantic rescue mission.

Starkling weaved a sinuous trail through the methane sea and circled the Mordecai. Slowly the golem lifted an arm out and reached out with a powerful hand towards it. The swarm being settled onto the Mordecai's hand and arm. Tellus could feel the telepathic interchange between the two and realised that the golem was sharing its joy at the company and peace. The mental purr that had previously cheered Tellus up so much increased as Starkling mirrored the feeling back towards the golem.

After several long seconds Tellus knew that this was what Starkling needed, the sharing of the peace of this moment, and the Hykraian swam around the two of them echoing the sensation back in waves of shared happiness.

They purred their healing contentment.

Thirteen - Dann Hortra of Naltor, line of sight probability manipulation
Kid Pulsar - Neel Koduah of Earth, incredible strength, invulnerability, projection of explosive blasts


Dann Hortra meditated in his quarters.

The Naltorian had been struggling with his memories from Talok viii.

He knew that he had been possessed... whatever had happened was not due to any choices he consciously made while there, but still, the darkness had been so alluring that he almost imagined that he had been acting of his own free will. It flashed before his mind's eye again and again, the insidious sense of completeness wrapped up in the dark urges of the Blight. He had many years of Naltorian meditation techniques to fall back upon and these helped clear some of the thoughts away and regain his inner balance. Though not all of them. There was one that kept returning to nip at his thoughts...

When the chime alerted him to someone outside, he half-resisted the urge to see who it was. The chime struck again and this time the young man from Naltor called out for the door to open. Neel Koduah, one of the newest Legionnaires to join the Legion, looked nervously into the apartment before stepping over the threshold.

"Dann? Ar' y' there bud?"

"Kid Pulsar, am I needed for a mission?" Thirteen hoped his weariness didn't show.

"Oh... no, I hope no' anyways." The muscular young man gave a small smile. "Hope y'don't mind but ah was kinda hopin' to talk. You got time f'r me?"

"Of course, are you okay Neel?" Thirteen could see that the new Legionnaire looked like he was struggling quite badly; his body language was usually so certain and confident but at that moment it looked more defensive and scared. Thirteen was aware that as much as the blight infested impulses were throwing him off balance they must be pushing harder on other members of the team. Not everyone would have his Naltorian training to help them clear their minds. He had contemplated arranging for a tutorial to be shared across the intra-site holocomm.

"Ah... no, not really y'see.. It's weird, I've been a Legionnaire for like all ah two minutes an' I seem to keep gettin' hijacked by our en'mies...

"Yes," Thirteen gave a small grin, "I understand. We've all been hijacked lately it seems. In the last 18 months the Emerald Empress used nannites... that was just before our time, then the Dark Circle Psyche tore into us and before we recover the Blight darkness got us. It's pretty scary, eh?"

Kid Pulsar looked away as he snorted a brief laugh, "Yeah, some truth in that, I guess..." He wiped a hand across his eyes.

There was a silence between them until Dann Hortra finally spoke. He had watched his colleague and could tell that Kid Pulsar was in some pain. Perhaps, thought Dann, he needed something to take his mind of it...

"I'm glad you came as I need your opinion on something Neel. It's kinda private but I've been wondering if perhaps it shouldn't be. It's... there's a couple of our colleagues know about this but I need to know if I should share it more."

"Sure, mate, whatever you want." He didn't sound certain but at least Neel gave a smile as he replied.

Thirteen gave a wide grin and said, "Just watch this and tell me what you think."

With that Thirteen tore off his waistcoat and shirt revealing his perfectly sculpted muscular torso and unbuttoned the top of his trousers.

"Umm... y'know I'm flattered an' all but you're not my sort. Sorry Dann, no'hin' personal." Kid Pulsar sounded embarrassed and started to turn away.

Thirteen laughed "That's not what I mean... don't worry, you're perfectly safe. It's time for some honesty. If I'd done this before going to Talok viii I'd have been more useful and perhaps saved you properly from those tentacles." And with that Dann Hortra relaxed his grip on the probabilities that gave him his beautiful shape and assumed his natural form.

"Whoah! Bloody stars man! Like, what the absolute freck is this?" Kid Pulsar backed away a couple of steps holding a hand over his mouth.

"It's me Neel... as nature made me originally. Bit of a change, eh? I use my abilities keeping that other shape. Using them like that limits what I can do though. If I'd been like this..."

"Wow! You are so freaky cool! That is amazing, totally did not expect this. Wow!" Kid Pulsar said, his eyes wide as he approached his colleague. The grin on the new legionnaire's face was as wide as Thirteen had ever seen.

"Thank you... so, what do you think? Do you think the team should know? I really don't know..." For the first time that Kid Pulsar could recall in the few months they knew each other, Thirteen sounded unsure of himself.

Lightning Lass - Senior Team member, Ayla Ranzz of Winath, electrical generation and manipulation
Backlash - Mrruaw M?Nau of Simballi, enhanced strength, speed, senses, absorbs kinetic energy to boost own size and mass
XS - Jenni Ognats of an alternate dimension Aarok, phenomenal speed
Polar Girl - Mel Lassar of Tharr - cryokinesis
Cosmic Kid - Po Miman, Justice Legionnaire of alternate dimension Mars, energy manipulation and flight

Ayla's team arrived on Rimbor with a string of open warrants for known murderers. They caught nineteen of the twenty-four they had come looking for and managed to break up a smuggling ring. a chop shop for aircars and a child prostitution brothel in the process. Cosmic Kid saved a child that was flung off the top of a building in a dramatic attempt to distract the Legionnaires - the image of the young man from the far-off reality diving off the edge of one of the massive Hive Blocks to swoop the young girl to safety was shown across the United Planets that day on virtually every news stream. Ayla laughed when their reporter told her it had knocked a story of Tinya's team in Lunar London right off the most viewed top spot news article for the day. This was exactly the sort of day she needed and she could see that the team appreciated it as well.

They had a couple of hours left of the challenge so when a news feed pointed to a riot erupting on Prima-Callius 3 they leapt through the warp. The team were seriously challenged here as there didn't appear to be an absolute right or a wrong side - the riots were politically motivated and causing tremendous damage but the ruling caste were clearly corrupt... still, several dozen overly aggressive natives, from both sides, ended up in incapacity cuffs and the whole incident very quickly quietened down. Lightning Lass used her flight ring generated loudhailer to announce to the crowds and watching population that the Legion would come back if further rioting took place so both sides needed to talk to each other and prepare for compromises. Ayla promised to return in a week if she hadn't heard by then that conditions were improving. It was great footage for the reporter to share. Ayla grinned from ear to ear as she called for another warp.

XS quickly rounded up the violent offenders that had been causing so much havoc on the Fentarathos refuelling station in the Rim sector. Once again it was Cosmic Kid who stole the spotlight as far as the cameras were concerned as he knitted the lasers shot at the team into a dazzling mandala-like pattern before returning the energy blasts at the thugs who were stupid enough to try to shoot at the Legionnaires. It looked quite magnificent on the holotube. Ayla noted they had under an hour left so she asked her team what they wanted to do... two minutes later they called up a warp and jumped into a prison riot currently being reported on the correctional facility on the dark side of the second moon of Strathantho.

All-in-all Ayla thought it was a great day to be a Legionnaire!


After they had completed their allotted time and returned the reporters to the offices the three teams met up on First Base and compared notes. Ayla's group had won the challenge but Tinya announced she would take them all out when they next had time off together and damn the double shifts.

Ayla cheekily asked if her team could get double drinks as compensation, after all they had been the winners...

Legion World Second Base, Central Gymnasium:

Ferro - Douglas Nolan of Earth, can assume invulnerable iron isotope form
Gazelle - J'izl Dtutuu from the Khundian Battle Brigade, of Khundia Prime, enhanced strength, speed, agility and metabolic control

Tyroc - Deputy leader - Troy Stewart of Marzal city pocket dimension, sonic control

Titan - Nasir N?Cube of Titan, alpha-level telepathy


"So... just 'cause this place is quieter than our gyms and we're not gonna get busted by Tinya you wanna see how much we can break in one session?" Doug asked incredulously.

"Douglas, we must test these facilities to their utmost. It is only proper, if only for other users' safety." J'izl Dtutuu smiled as she replied. Her serious tone didn't fool Douglas Nolan for a second.

"You do wanna break them then. Well, it sounds like a plan... okay." In truth both had felt out of sorts since they had been Blighted on Talok viii and the idea of lashing out was very welcome. The pair proceeded to mock fight in the middle of the cavernous room, throwing each other against various fixtures and walls and didn't even attempt to pull punches as they battered against the constructs and confines of the training space.

They had spent almost five whole minutes throwing each other around with tremendous vigour in complete denial of the gym's AI requests for to desist and resume circuit training before the holo of Tyroc appeared. The Second Base team leader had been struggling to write up his mission log when he had spotted them on a monitor-holo.

"Doug! J'izl! Perhaps y' might wish to consider conserving y'r energy for the next mission... eh?"

"Hey Troy..." Ferro had a wide grin on his face as he picked himself up out of a rather large dent in the floor and saluted an acknowledgement towards the Second Base team leader.

"Listen, I'd be really grateful if you c'd resist destroyin' the place, any more than you's already have. Or at least do it on y'r own base, not that we don't 'preciate you visiting us out here. If y' want a serious work out we'll design a trainin' routine 'specially for you's two... now desist! You are not Academy students nor are y's junior members anymore so I expect..." He went on to admonish them at quite some length.

Both Ferro and Gazelle managed to look thoroughly contrite until Tyroc finished his rather robust telling off and the holo had popped out of existence. As it did both Doug and J'izl collapsed into fits of laughter.

In his ready room Troy Stewart saw on the monitor that his two teammates had fallen onto the floor laughing. He laughed as well as he watched them, the idea that he would be telling anyone off for having fun was simply ludicrous given his own distrust of the structured authoritarianism that historically had underpinned much of the Legion organisation. Still, after his chuckling had subsided, he continued to monitor them for a few more minutes by which time they had stopped their laughing and started to tidy up the gym around them.

Perhaps, thought Tyroc, if he could persuade Hethuk to design some sort of dangerous room for the more physically empowered team members to train in it would save the Gear from having to recycle so much expensive equipment...

As Troy returned to his report, he missed the sight of Titan walking into the gymnasium. Nasir N'Cube had been ruthlessly manipulated by Professor Aven under the influence of the Dark Circle dimension Psyche to such an extent that the Legionnaire had needed the care of the Titanian medi-paths for the couple of monthsand had only had the all-clear to return to his Legion duties 24 hours prior. Douglas Nolan saw his friend walk in to the damaged gymnasium and immediately sped across the dented and damaged floor to hug the tall telepath.

Nasir had tears in his eyes as he reciprocated the tight embrace.

Phantom Girl - Team leader, Tinya Wazzo of Bgtzl Dimension, intangibility
Element Lad - Jan Arrah of Trom, elemental transmutation

Gravity Kid - Science Police Officer Tel Vole of Earth, manipulation of personal or nearby gravity
Power Boy - Science Police Officer Jedidiah Rikane of Earth, personal density control

Dr Richard Kent Shakespeare -Impulse ? Chief medical officer - enhanced strength, speed, durability, stamina


Tinya had always liked Jan.

He was the first boy she had ever met that was able to resist her charms without being rude about it. Jan had been so sweet, kind, thoughtful, and, appeared to be without any real ego. Jo had always been a bit wary of him though, saying there was a darkness in him that was waiting to show itself. Until Roxxas the pirate reappeared several years after Jan had joined the team, she would never have believed it possible for the smiling blond boy to ever lose his cool. After she had read that mission log which stated that at one point it appeared that Chemical King was the only thing standing between Jan and a life sentence for murder Tinya had been more cautious around her Trommite colleague.

That all felt like a lifetime ago now. They had both been through so much that she doubted now if the galactic media would blink an eye if Jan vaporised someone like the butcher of his people. She seriously doubted the team would push for charges to be made against him, which kind of alarmed her as she had this thought. Now wasn't the time to consider such things, she had news to share. They had returned from their recent mission and she had asked if he and Kent could join her for a drink.

Right now, Tinya wanted to share some news with her Trommite friend and she needed Dr Shakespeare to be present, just in case...

The three of them had met in Shakes and Tinya led the two men to a secluded booth.

"Jan, I'm going to get right to it, Brin, laurel and that bunch have just come back from meeting with the Wanderers. While they were away, they met with another survivor from Trom." She stared at Jan's face, silently hopeful that he would be happy about this news.

"I knew I wasn't the only survivor. Or, I kind of knew... it's not a surprise to hear this Tinya."

"What do you mean?" Kent asked. "How?" Tinya said at the same time. They both turned to each other and gave a small smile acknowledging that they had talked over each other.

"The Shadowmancer didn't say I unique... it got me thinking and I realised that sometimes my people would exchange their services off world for supplies. I guessed at least one other must have been away from Trom that day."

They were all silent for a few seconds before Jan spoke again.

"Thanks for letting me know Tinya. Seriously, I'm relieved to hear it. Once the team are all back on their feet, I might go look for them, though I wonder what they'll think of me now..."

Before anyone could speak, Jed Rikane and Tel Vole had walked up to the table and interrupted.

"Tinya, hi," Jed said, "Hope we're not intruding but Tel and me were talkin' and wondered... if we quit the Science Police will you keep us as full Legionnaires?"

"We don't want to risk having our place here taken away from us again... is that alright?" Tel said from his husband's side. The two men smiled hopefully.

Tinya glanced at Jan before replying, "While I assure you that we see you both as proper Legionnaires and neither of you are going anywhere until you decide otherwise, right now isn't the right time for us to rattle the SP's cages... we'll revisit this in a couple of months, okay?" Tinya's tone was warm but she didn't smile as she replied.

Tel muttered his thanks while Jed smiled at Tinya, said how happy he was to see Jan back and the two men returned to their seats in another corner of Shakes.

Jan rolled his eyes and 'tsked' theatrically which made Tinya giggle. She did like both Jed and Tel but sometimes they could be just too self-absorbed to see the bigger picture.

Fist Base

Chemical Kid - Hadru Jamik of Phlon, catalyzes chemical reactions

Shardwurd Gandussen of the Ten Peaks from Avalon - Silver Shaman - Medical officer - biokinetic healing
Dr Richard Kent Shakespeare -Impulse ? Chief medical officer - enhanced strength, speed, durability, stamina


Shardwurd Gandussen Looked at Hadru's injured hand and took a long breath.

"Hold your hand out flat please Mr Jamik." The young medic said politely.

"I don't need this, y'know, I can fix myself..."

"You can't fix your broken bones by yourself Hadru, so please..." Shardwurd spoke quietly as he held his right hand out palm up.

Hadru harrumphed to himself before laying his bloody and swollen hand on top of the healers'. Shardwurd placed his other hand on top and closed his eyes.

"May I ask you please stop using your own abilities on yourself for now Hadru. It would make my task a lot easier and you will heal quicker."

"Oh, for Florgg's sake," Hadru hissed, "...first the Sci-cops try to read me the riot act for defending myself and now some archaic space-hippy wants to hold my hand and tell me how my powers work. What a crock of synthshit this is!"

"Please don't talk to me that way. I may not be a full Legionnaire like you yet I am using my abilities..."

Hadru snatched his hand away angrily.

"If you don't accept this treatment you leave me no choice but to bar you from any further missions until you are given the all clear." Sharwurd had been told many times by Kent that he could use this line if there were any problems though until this moment, he had never felt it appropriate. To be honest, the young healer was unsure if it was entirely truthful and was worried that he may be disciplined for saying it.

"Who the hell do you think you are with your little power to fix bones to boss me around?" Chemical Kids voice rose. "Don't you know who I am... What I can do when I put my mind to it?" Hadru snapped at the young medic as he started to rise from where he had sat on a floating bed. The Phlonite Legionnaire snarled as he pushed the healer away from himself, his face was red and he bunched his hands into fists.

"Of course I know who you are, and what you can do." The medic's voice was soft though the look he gave the Legionnaire was definitely not. Sharwurd's voice started to get more confident as he also stood up. Easily a foot taller than the Legionnaire, the young healer's face was tight with anger and frustration as he looked down upon the Legionnaire.

"Though, with all due respect to your station, I don't believe you know who I am." Shardwurd's voice was not loud but carried through the medi-bay, "I am the person who will grant you mission status ...or not, depending on how I see fit. And for the record Mr Jamik, my talents are far more than simply fixing broken bones. Dr Shakespeare calls it bio-kinesis... the manipulation of living matter. So, if it were my nature, I could quite easily inflame your tongue and seal your mouth shut so you could no longer talk so disrespectfully to your colleagues, or stop the blood flowing around your body and then snap every one of your bones into sharp little pieces and reset them in all the wrong places on a whim. But instead, right now, I am trying to ease your pain and fix the broken bones you have from punching an already unconscious man on the head. I do this so you may be mission ready. At which time you can use your wonderful abilities again... So," the tall medic took a deep breath and lowered his voice to an almost whisper, "...now that we are better acquainted, perhaps you would like to hold your hand out so I may fix those broken bones for you?"

They didn't speak after that as Shardwurd Gandussen of the Ten Peaks, the young mutant healer from the distant lo-tec world of Avalon, set the broken bones in Hadru Jamik's hand with a minimum of fuss from his blushing patient.


Afterwards, when Shardwurd went to speak to Kent Shakespeare about the incident the young medic shook, the adrenaline from the encounter was still fizzing in his system. He had never stood up for himself like that before. On Avalon when he was growing up that would have been unthinkable as it would lead to a severe beating and deprivation of rations.

Kent kindly placed an arm around the young healer's shoulder and smiled.

"You did good, you did absolutely the right thing son, and you should feel proud of yourself for it. I'll see to it Hadru is not allowed active mission status until Dr Faulkner also gives him the all-clear. It sounds like the boy is getting ready to snap. Oh, and if you really wanted to, I believe you could do all of those things you said to him... though of course we would prefer you didn't." Kent smiled again as he spoke, helping the young man feel more at ease.

Then the muscular doctor started to laugh. The young healer felt a momentary panic until the Legion's doctor spoke again.

"Shardwurd, please tell me the security holo picked it all up. I'd really, really love to see the little snots face when you put him in his place. It'd be the highlight of the week!"

IB, once again my thanks for your feedback - very gratefully received!

The part with Starkling and Tellus was written last night - I had struggled to think of a way to show the effects of Starkling's Blight experience, but then after reading Raz's most recent post I remembered my take on Mordecai was far less destructive and went for it - thanks Raz!

Anyway, there'll be more soon as Lu leads a mission of mercy and we go visit the Amazons of the 31st century.

C

More beautiful scenes, Harbi.

Comet Queen and Chemical Kid in particular really show the effects of Blighting, and it's good that there will be repercussions from this - and that some, like Atom Girl, really recognize it.

The Tinya/Jan friendship was touching, and I like the reference to Jan's history in the comics. Also Jan's underhanded/understated sense of humor - very Levitz!

Tinya is fast becoming a favorite leader of mine, she really knows how to balance strictness/ firmness with kindness and warmth (e.g. Kid Q II and the reporter, Jed and Tel). i laughed a bit at Jed and Tel being self-absorbed - but am also happy to see them have a confirmed place with the team.

Silver Shaman had an amazing scene! I'm really loving him.

Was also great seeing some of the team have fun on their missions. They definitely need a bit of that after everything that went down!

I really liked all of these scenes, but some standout moments for me were:

* Tinya realising she and Sodam have feelings for each other, it came across as a very realistic reaction from someone who lost someone they've loved for a long time and who hasn't really had a chance to explore relationships outside of that

* while I'm sad that Grev is gone, I like that he was recognised posthumously

* the scene with Dirk and Gim was also well done - I liked it because it kind of touches on the darkness that they gave Dirk in the 5YL Legion, but also it's really difficult to give Gim something to do which doesn't revolve around his whole Vi/Yera drama, and this felt like a natural thing that his character would do

* Thunder with Dawny: I love that they both love and miss Kara in their own ways but they're a bit lost in how to comfort each other, that's such a realistic depiction of friends-in-law sharing grief

* the scene with Tellus/Starkling/Mordecai.....it's hard to examine alien viewpoints without having a POV character and you did a very good job of it

* Chemical Kid: I was pleasantly surprised to see his violent reaction - it gives him depth beyond being the overly entitled spoiled rich kid

Senior Team from Home Base

Triplicate Girl - Luornu Durgo of Carggg, able to split into three identical duplicates (part of Duplicate Girl)
Cosmic Boy - Rokk Krinn of Braal, manipulation of magnetic fields

Senior Team from First Base

Phantom Girl - Team leader, Tinya Wazzo of Bgtzl Dimension, intangibility
Thunder - Deputy leader, Cecelia Becks of 21st Century Earth, immense strength, speed, indestructibility, space flight, wisdom
Sun Boy - Senior Team member, Dirk Morgna of Earth, generation of intense light and heat
Lightning Lass - Senior Team member, Ayla Ranzz of Winath, electrical generation and manipulation

'Captain Heavyweight' - Captain Tuk Shir of the Science Police from Daxam, Senior Team liaison, incredible strength, speed, stamina, senses, laser vision, space flight, invulnerability

Dr Richard Kent Shakespeare -Impulse ? Chief medical officer - enhanced strength, speed, durability, stamina

Senior Team from Second Base

Tyroc - Deputy leader - Troy Stewart of Marzal city pocket dimension, sonic control
Mon El - Senior Team member, Lar Gand of Daxam, incredible strength, speed, stamina, senses, laser vision, space flight, invulnerability
Dawnstar of Starhaven - Senior Team member, space flight, incredible speed, tracking

Captain Phantom - Senior Team liaison, Science Police Captain Gryal Vrizza of Bgztl Dimension, intangibility


Phantom Girl had called all the Senior Team together for a meeting.

She knew that the Senior Team weren't at their full strength, with Brainy having just quit, Jan requesting that he wasn't included until he felt more settled, Harmonia returning to Utopia, Reep being off on Rimbor for an espionage mission, and even Nura had stepped away when she became a mother.... As these thoughts went through her mind Tinya realised that in the last couple of years the team's structure had altered incredibly and she seemed to be at the helm of it as their course had changed. She wasn't quite sure if this had been for better or worse.

Her premise for calling this meeting was to discuss the success of the three team missions that she had instigated the day before. After the successes being broadcast across news-feeds the other day she asked the team if perhaps they should arrange for something to happen along those lines every day or two... 'Hit Squads', as she called them, that could be focused on quick solutions to everyday crimes.

Ayla mentioned how great they had all felt after assisting the refugees from Talok viii so perhaps they could focus on disaster relief as well. Ayla smiled as she spoke and her enthusiasm was infectious. Perhaps, she said, they should look into running the 'Hope Squads' alongside the 'Hit Squads'. They discussed these ideas with Luornu suggesting that a three-monthly audit be run to check that the team were all taking turns on each. Tyroc and Sun Boy laughed though Tinya agreed and asked Lu if she wanted to monitor the teams' choices for a future report. It would be expected that everyone present would join in equally with both types of mission. And, as they were all on the Senior Team, it would be expected that they encouraged all their teammates to do the same.

Captain Tuk Shir asked if they should liaise with the SP's to ensure they weren't interrupting any ongoing mission that might be happening within the larger law enforcement field. Tinya smiled at him as she asked if he could arrange it. Everyone agreed and Tinya was happily surprised at how quickly and easily this idea had been passed by the Senior Team.

She knew her second idea would be more controversial but she quickly addressed it. She proposed allowing students to become interns and join the main team on their base's for smaller missions. After the evacuation of Talok viii quite a few had stood out for their exemplary conduct and, alongside the Academy's records of their overall behaviour, Tinya had picked out twelve that she thought should be in the first group to be invited for an internship.

As she expected there was a heated discussion about which students should be included. Eleven of Tinya's twelve were agreed while a further twelve were suggested. Even Mon El, who Tinya expected to be a stumbling block to her idea progressing, complimented her on being forward thinking. As he said, they had three planetoids that could support a couple of thousand beings if need-be so why were they holding back? Tyroc had laughed and asked where their Lar had gone. The group all laughed. Mon El smiled and nodded and told the group that after what he had seen happen to Talok viii, a world he had known well and loved, he understood that the time for caution was over. Ayla, sitting next to the Daxamite, turned around to plant a kiss on the top of his head.

Tinya was so surprised by the immediate support her ideas had received that she felt tears start to well up. Luornu noticed and put a hand on hers and gave a quick smile of understanding. They had all had a tough few years and it had given them a clearer perspective on what the team should stand for.

They discussed the student potentially available to them for the next twenty minutes before finally agreeing upon a list of candidates that they would offer internships to. The list included help for the support crew. Tyroc said that the team was going to live up to its name and be an actual Legion very soon!

It was more than Phantom girl had imagined when she first took over leading the team just eighteen months ago. After almost a decade of the team numbers being fairly stagnant, she had introduced lasting changes that would only increase their ranks and effectiveness. She wished Jo Nah had lived to see this, but knew she would never have taken hold of the reigns like this is he had still been a part of her life...

Ayla asked if an intern would be included on each Hit and Hope Squad mission? The group discussed this for ten minutes until they decided that an intern would be on each Hit mission, while two could be placed on a Hope mission. Ayla appeared particularly pleased with this result.

Rokk asked if the interns were to be given the added incentive of an offer of full membership if after three months or so they had passed all the on-the-job training? The group discussed how that this could be included though Lu asked if they could leave it to her to work out the actual contractual conditions that would lead to full membership being given, especially as a few of the proposed interns were contracted to Science Police organisations. Rokk then if this was a success then would the team offer more places every three or four months... Some agreed though not all. Tinya moved on from this quickly without waiting for a vote, saying that they would see how successful this first group were before making any promises about the future.

Science Police Captain Gryal Vrizza of Bgztl, one of two meta-SP's that sat in with the Senior Team, asked if the military and Science Police candidates that were on Home Base for meta-ability training should be included in these offers for internship, as surely the team didn't want to rile the law enforcement agencies of the UP by taking away their own candidates? Lu and Dirk both laughed aloud at this question, which drew dark glances their way from the Bgztlr captain. Tinya smiled and, with a twinkle in her eyes, said that surely the United Planet law enforcement agencies would take tremendous pride in having one or two of their own being offered Legion membership. Captain Vrizza gave a tight humourless smile as a reply though obviously he did not fully agree though kept his own opinions to himself.

"So," said Tinya, "...final vote then, we will offer students that we think have potential to become full membership internships with a three month monitoring time-frame. What say you?"

Everyone voted 'Aye'.

By the end of the meeting it was agreed. They would offer eighteen internships for students from the Academy and start running daily 'Hit Squads' focusing on criminal investigation and containment along with 'Hope Squads' which would offer relief and support for humanitarian and crisis situations.

Lu and Rokk said they would make the announcement to the Academy after the meeting and would let the team know the responses to their offers as soon as they had them. Tinya said she would announce it to the full team once they knew if the students were willing to take their places.

Tinya Wazzo smiled as she called the meeting to a close.

The Spear of Artemis - Amynta of Nostos ii, incredible strength, speed, invulnerability, space flight, carries magical weapons
Karate Kid - Mithindrivithis Ngandraffa of Lythyl, strength, reflexes, mimetic motor learning giving incredible combat skills


Nostos ii - a barely habitable world tidally locked around a red dwarf star right on the edges of UP space.

The Amazonian settlers had arrived seven centuries before and immediately set about building their cities along the terminator line between the cold darkness that permanently covered one half of this planet and the fiery molten heart of the other hemisphere.

Wind on the land always blew from the cold side towards the hot though up above it blew the opposite way as the air circulated between the two extremes. This gave rise to some quite unusual atmospheric conditions - for one, despite the stormy clouds that raged across the skies it almost never rained though low-level cloudbanks and thick fogs were very common. As a result, the Amazons used enormous spider web-like nets set above their homes to capture moisture straight from the air and funnel it into holding tanks for their water.

In total there were twelve cities built and several hundred villages, though in reality these were little more than farmers markets at crossroads. The stable Amazon population of a little over half a million followed a traditional way of life. While the sciences were greatly admired and supported, generally most of the population live in the same pre-first industrial age way that they had for millennia. On the whole they were farmers and artisans that enjoy a simple and satisfying life.

Each city has a patron Goddess, and within their temples the warriors sworn to protect the Goddesses' priestesses are chosen and trained.


Amynta's grandmother Glykeria was waiting for them on the cobbled path that led to her cottage as the two Legionnaires stepped through the warp.

As usual, the older Amazon was wearing a teal green robe and the lines at the edges of her eyes crinkled affectionately as she smiled. Amynta strode up to her grandmother and put her strong arms around her in a hug. Glykeria reciprocated fiercely. Amynta introduced her friend after she had stepped back. Karate Kid bowed deeply and held out a hand with a small gift she had brought. Amynta had mentioned that her grandmother's orchard had been damaged badly just before the Amazon warrior had left to join the Legion so inside the small box were apple and pear seeds brought from the grove Harmonia had planted over a year before on Home Base. Karate Kid had asked Glorith to enchant them so they might reach full maturity within a year.

"Your friend has better manners than you ever did Amynta, I like her." Glykeria said with a mischievous smile. She clapped a hand on the elfin Legionnaire's shoulder as she saw what was inside the parcel and after it was explained exactly what properties the seeds held, she thanked Mithindrivithis with another generous smile. Karate Kid could smell fresh bread and cooking meats, herbs and vegetables coming from the cottage amongst the sweeter scents from the garden. Obviously, Glykeria was preparing a hot meal for them. The older Amazonian led them into her home.

After their meal they sat contentedly at the dining table talking.

Amynta told her grandmother about the Legion and the worlds she had visited since she had last been to Nostos ii, with Karate Kid filling in some details. Eventually, her news was up to date and there was a small silence until Karate Kid asked Glykeria about her bee hives, explaining that they did not have them on Steeple so honey was an almost impossible commodity there. Glykeria was more than happy to tell of her skills with beekeeping, glad to have someone to share her tales with.

The conversation meandered between the pleasant and the brutally honest as the evening progressed. Amynta at times appeared upset almost as often as she was happy and her mood swings were not unnoticed. Eventually her grandmother asked her directly what was troubling her.

"I must see the Priestesses grandmother, the last mission we were on has... it upset me." Amynta said, her eyes fell away from her grandmothers as she admitted her weakness.

"We will go there in the morning, daughter of my daughter. Allow me this one evening to soak up your presence."

Amynta respectfully agreed though kept her eyes low as she spoke.

Although it never got dark Glykeria announced it was past time for her to retire as she expected the next day to be busy. Amynta agreed and she showed Karate Kid to the small spare room at the rear of the kitchen where she would spend the night. The room was stark with white washed walls and only a single bed and a small wardrobe inside. There were no windows to allow the constant light in from outside. Mithindrivithis gave her thanks and closed the door behind her. She had no need for a candle as her vision worked equally well in the darkness.

It was almost an hour later when Glykeria tapped softly on her door. Karate Kid allowed her in and they sat on the edge of the bed together.

"What has happened to my granddaughter? I have never seen her act so." the old lady asked quietly, her eyes scrutinising Mithindrivithis intently as she did.

"We were all affected by a being we call the Blight. It has upset our equilibriums..."

"You are not as damaged." Glykeria said bluntly.

"I believe I am, and where I with my family perhaps it would show too." Karate Kid responded gently. Glykeria nodded and stood up. Before she reached the door she turned to the elfin Legionnaire and spoke again.

"She must be careful tomorrow at the temple. There are those that will not respect any weakness from our Spear. She doesn't know but there have been calls for her to be stripped of her title for deserting us. You must make sure she is safe. Keep her strong, you understand? Centred."

"Of course, though should we not warn her if there is trouble waiting for her there?"

"Hah, by now you must know how stubborn and proud my granddaughter is." Glykeria said it softly, her affection was obvious, "Do you think warning her would help? She would stride into the temple and make the challenges before we could stop her if she believed anyone there doubted an iota of her abilities."

Karate Kid gave an understanding smile, she knew her friend well enough to know this was the truth.

"So, tomorrow, what would you have me do?"

Gykeria gave a weary smile, "Be her friend and let her know you have her back. An Amazon on her own can be fierce but when supported by a true sister is unstoppable."

two more nice installments, Harbi! love the forward-thinking-ness of Tinya's proposals, and the Hope Squad especially (something I always thought the Legion should do, so many have powers suited for it...)

Tinya's thoughts that she would never have taken leadership up without Jo - very realistic.

love the burgeoning friendship between K Kid and Amynta, too

I love both these posts - the first one because it shows just how much of a family the Legion are after all these years and I also really enjoy seeing the logical way you build what the Legion of Superheroes can be in a way that's never really been explored in canon. It's interesting too seeing Tinya's development without Jo, just as it was seeing how he developed in the 5YL Legion when Tinya was gone.

The second post is great because I've always wanted some exploration of what happened with the Amazons by the Legion's time, and it's cool seeing two homemade characters get the spotlight. Looking forward to seeing what happens next!

Officially missing (Espionage Squad mission): Rimbor, investigation of former Vice-Chancellor Sa Lok of Rimbor, the once Under Secretary to the United Planets Security Council

Chameleon Boy ? Espionage Squad leader, Reep Daggle of Durla, shape changer
Spy (Former team counsellor) - Dr Noah Kabbo - Heightened awareness and limited telepathy
Prescience (Former Academy student) - Gord Eno of Naltor - precognition, specialising in short range visions for combat situations


Gord Eno was finally happy!

Chameleon Boy had asked the former student to meditate every night on the off-chance that the Naltorian could induce a vision that would help the small team on their espionage mission. So far, in the 18 nights where it had been possible to set aside an hour to so there had only been one, which had been fairly important as it led them to an illegal arms cache on Rimbor the next day, but Gord still felt that his gift hadn't produced the goods... Reep wanted to get a data vampire onto a central information hub of the former Under Secretary but even figuring out where he was had proved difficult beyond expectation.

Reep had never criticized or complained while Noah Kabbo had only said that he found the lack of foresight of anything major to be a reassurance - no news was good news! Gord was experienced enough to know that without pharmaceutical help he wouldn't be able to force his pre-sight, and even then there was no guarantees it would be 100% accurate... he refused to use the stims that some of his peers had grown accustomed to taking to increase their visions as the after-effects and potential of developing an addiction to them were too great.

Currently the three man team were based on a small shuttle craft in a repair shop on the southernmost tip of an orbiting platform spinning its way around Rimbor.

Reep had taken on the identity of an aging mechanic so would often be gone for the majority of the daytime shift. The Legionnaire made sure his new persona was sociable enough as to not raise alarms without being too forward. Mechanics gossiped about the crafts they worked on and the cargo they might see so Reep had thoght this was a fairly decent alter-ego to keep while here. The Durlan Legionnaire had plenty of experience at these sort of missions. Dr Kabbo offered his services as a down-on-his-luck Tarot and palm reader on the main thoroughfare across from the ship yard - he said it was surprising how many people visited him each day. The former counselor to the Legion had never suspected how superstitious merchants could be. And with a little push now and again he could get a fair amount of information from them. Meanwhile, Gord taken the identity of a young scavenger, currently docked up while his ship had repairs. This disguise meant he was perfectly placed to wander the station, ask questions - as scavengers were always on the lookout for any information that might point them towards their next big break, and generally not answer too many personal questions himself so long as his credit held out.

Between them they had logged twenty three cases that were not associated with their mission so they would hand over the data collected to the Science Police once this mission was over.

When the news broke about Talok viii Noah had asked Reep if they would be better returning to help the team. The Durlan had considered it for several seconds before shaking his head and explaining that he estimated the team would be fine though he would monitor the newsfeeds and if the situation changed he would let them know.

It was two days later and Gord was out getting supplies when they finally had a major break. The young Naltorian had been queuing at a food barter station when he felt the first flush of a vision come over him. After the years he had studied to become a Pre-Commando he had honed his precognitive skills to be more focused on short term visions so now when the sight of anything over that was given to him he found the experience could be utterly exhausting. The young man put a hand across his eyes and stumbled to the side. Other beings in the queue complained and called out to him but as he stumbled away from them his place was quickly taken and the cat-calls died down. As far as they were aware the young man that had just sat against a wall clutching is head was most likely nothing more than another addict littering their station while looking for a handout.

The vision that had struck him was the first real big break towards shutting down Sa Lok's network. Gord Eno awoke with the knowledge that they had three hours to get to Sa Lok's estate or they would miss their opportunity.

He stood up, growled at the queue of people staring at him before turning back to the small teams craft, surreptitiously calling for Reep and Noah to get back as quickly as they could.

Gord Eno had finally seen how they might succeed.

Former Vice-Chancellor Sa Lok of Rimbor, the once Under Secretary to the United Planets Security Council had made sure that were he to be 'retired' before fully willing to leave the post he had held for the last two decades he would take enough ordnance and operatives so that if any of his many enemies were to make a move against him he would not be an easy target.

Sa Lok personally owned an estate that covered approximately 320 hectares of prime farming land in the Southern Ring Hills - also sometimes known as the Golden Hills. His estate was not overlooked yet held a 360 degree view of the Central Plain and of his neighbour's estates. Not that he really had neighbours in the literal sense as over the last three decades he had surreptitiously bought those farmsteads and their land through a wide range of shell companies and housed his growing personal army in them. Sa Lok knew that as the Under Secretary he had been involved in a lot of actions that had made him some serious enemies. At least here, now that he was no longer formally protected by the UP, he felt relatively safe.

His personal valet, a Khund called Charggrach that had fought successfully within the Challenge Courts of his dark skied home world before fleeing to escape some gambling debt, approached him. In the valet's white gloved hands was an ornate silver tray with a small white envelope upon it.

"Sir," the Khund's voice showed no traces of his rough origin, "This has just arrived. The courier is waiting outside for a reply."

Without looking up from the hard light screen he was examining while finishing his breakfast Sa Lok said, "Do you know what's in it?"

"As far as our scans could find, only a sheet of white parchment with a hand written message. No toxins, no micro-weapons, nothing organic..." The Khund bowed his head, laid the tray on the small table at the side of his master and backed away. It was at least twenty minutes later that Sa Lok stopped reading the screen he had opened before him and reached out for the envelope.

"I wonder what the Guilds are after now...?"

The former Under Secretary took the envelope and tore it open. The sheet of paper inside had a simple message -"The Legion will inconvenience you this day. Be careful."

Sa Lok recognized the swirling handwriting on the note - an ancient skill that so few truly appreciated, he thought. This warning had come from Seer Hellija Moonbeau, a precognitive of some worth that worked for the Ministry of Justice. He had been paying her hefty bribes for at least a decade just so she could send him warnings exactly like this when a vision showed something impacting upon his dealings.

While he wasn't surprised by the message he certainly wasn't happy. The Legion tended to draw a lot of attention towards whomever, or whatever, they were facing while Sa Lok had made it his lifetime mission to avoid such public scrutiny at all costs. And now he had a warning that within a day he would be facing them...

He quickly told Charggrach to give the courier a tip along with the message of thanks before turning to the holo-screens before him and raising images from various sites where he held his many vested interests.

Lightning Lass had led a small team to Rimbor.

They were there with a list of open warrants for suspected murderers hiding out on this world. Phantom Girl had set a challenge to them, the team with the most arrests would get a night out on Tinya's credit. Ayla was certain her team would win the challenge as they were all as keen as she was to catch as many of the bad guys as they could - drinks on the team leaders tab were an added bonus.

They had caught escaped four convicts and shut down a chop-shop when XS had led them into a dingy warehouse. The speedster had sorted out most of the security personnel when her teammates set foot into the cavernous main building. The tip they had been given had suggested that a smuggling ring was being organised here and Ayla hoped her team would put a stop to it.

As the electric Legionnaire led her team she was unaware that several levels underneath the warehouse was one of Sa Lok's organisations offices. The Rimborian former Under Secretary to the United Planets Security Council was watching the team from hidden spy-cans as they tore apart the security and arrested over a dozen of the muscle-bound staff that protected this investment. The great cat-like creature they called Backlash was sniffing around as it tried to find the hidden entrance to the levels below.

Sa Lok would not allow the Legionnaires to discover that office, it would lead them to other more vital sites and he had worked too hard getting his organisation firmly invested into the Rimborian under-culture to have a bunch of arrogant children ruin it. He gave silent thanks for the warning he had received earlier that day that Legionnaires would be close to him and gave the order for a clean-up team to get ready for action as he would blow up the office if the Legionnaires got too close.

Seer Hellija Moonbeau had indeed warned the corrupt former Under Secretary about Legionnaires getting close, but she had not specified which ones. As he gave his full attention to a series of holos that showed the team Ayla led move through the complex where the smugglers he ran fenced their good he was wholly unaware that a smaller team were infiltrating his home at that very moment.